Full text of "An original collection of extant epitaphs"

See other formats

Mpiben, E.

An original Collection of Extant
Epitaphs

■

1^-5

M^n

©njjinal

©nllectifttt

EXTANT

EPITAPHS.

GATHERED

By A COMMERCIAL

IN SPARE MOMENTS.

t F . OOoAWn 3

PUBLISHED BY REQUEST.

LONDON : •

F. MAIBEN, 131, ALDERSGATE STREET,

AND

22, IIARDINGE STREET, ISLINGTON.

. * MDCCOLXX.

[entered at stationers’ hall.]

“ The flower fades , the morning hasteth,

The sun sets, the shadow flies,

The gourd consumes — and man tie dies
Like to the grass that's neivly sprung."

From “ Man’s Mortality ” by SIMON WASTELL.
Born 1562. Date of Death uncertain.

“All heads must come
To the cold tomb,

Only the actions of the just
Smell sweet and blossom in the dust.

From “ Death's Final Conquest,” hy JAMES SHIRLEY.
Died 1666.

I (fj\ • o

vunt

{PREFACE TO MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION .]

To my Friends :

HE whole of the following Epitaphs have
been copied bp myself, from the various
places named, in moments snatched at intervals
during several years of occupation as a Com¬
mercial Traveller.

In selecting them, it is not only their evident
originality that has weighed with me, but also their
human interest, -their quaintness, and in a few instances
their mere oddity.

I hope the perusal of them may afford somewhat
of the pleasure I have experienced in collecting
them.

F. M.

22, Hardinge Street, Islington.

210963

AN EMBLEM OF THE TRINITY SURROUNDED BY AN

EMBLEM OF ETERNITY.

BURY ST. EDMUNDS CHURCHYARD.

^ W M <D 3D T5C €T 3? <I> ~W .

HEN a man wishes to gain publicity for a Work
of his own, it may, perhaps, often be expedient
to explain its scope and nature, and the motives which
prompted it. In the present instance, however, it is
the performances of other people which the compiler of
this volume has ventured to introduce to public notice ;
but, nevertheless, it is thought desirable to precede its
contents with a few introductory and explanatory words.

The nature of this work is evident at a glance, and
is sufficiently explained by its title. It is offered as
interesting in itself, and as a contribution of materials,
often touching, often striking — but always illustrative of
human character ; and if it be true that the “ proper study
of mankind is man,” it is thought that the book may
possess some interest not only for sympathetic readers,
but also for reflective minds and students of human
nature.

The involuntary contributors have all worked in one
direction, and have all had a common aim — to perpetuate
the memory of relatives, friends, and acquaintances, who
had left this bustling, anxious, striving scene, for that

“Undiscovered country, from whose bourne
No traveller returns.”

And, perhaps, no feeling of the mind is more natural,
or more 'universal, than the desire to do honour to the
dead — to keep alive the memory of the “ lov’d and lost.”

“ Ev’n from the tomb, the voice of Nature cries ;

Ev’n in our ashes live their wonted fires.”

The Compiler has had from boyhood a strong liking for
visiting Churchyards and Churches, feeling great interest

210863

INTRODUCTORY.

in their character as mementos of the past, and in thei
association with successive generations. An opportunit)
was afforded him of cultivating this fancy by his bein|
employed to “go on the road.’’ In his evening strolls, anc
at various times, while waiting for conveyances from stage
to stage, he copied these Epitaphs for his own amusement '
and for a lasting memorial to himself of the places he ^
visited. g

From time to time he has shown them to his friends anc j
acquaintance, and also to commercial and other visitor; i E
at the houses where he has sojourned, and by many he 1
has been urged to print. Believing that a more genuine r
Collection has not hitherto been published, he has at length f
yielded to these repeated requests. j

The greater portion of the Epitaphs here collected beai E
an evidence in themselves of being specially written foi C
the persons to whom they were inscribed. Some of them c
evince peculiar speculative ideas of a future existence J;
some are extreme in their adulations of the departed ; some (
are records of merely local interest, and others bear an c
historic and national character ; while a few among them C
are only noteworthy on account of their oddity. It will 1
be seen that in many cases the whole Inscription has been :
copied, and, as nearly as possible, the form of the Epitaph -
is shown in type ; thus preserving the style, grammar, p
orthography, and punctuation of the original. F

A few brief notes are appended, some in elucidation, and 1
others, mere crude thoughts, which occurred to the Com- r
piler while transcribing the Epitaphs to which they are |
attached.

August, 1870.

I ® ® E

^LVERSTOKE

Hants . ... .

- 30

\RRETON

Isle of Wight .

Basingstoke

Hants .

• 38

Biggleswade .

Beds .....

Birmingham

32, 5°i 63,

69, 7h 77

Brading .

Isle of Wight .

Brentwood

Essex .

Bridport

Dorset ....

• 35, 36

Brighton .

. 6, 7,

39, 72, 74

Bromley .

Kent .

Broxbourne

Herts .....

Bury St. Edmund’s

Canterbury

Carisbrookf. .

Isle of Wight .

22, 26

Cattistock

Dorset .....

Chelmsford .

Chichester

• 2, 3

Christchurch

Hants ....

• 73

Coventry .

Dunstable .

Beds .

• 36

Eastbourne

Sussex .....

. 2, 8

Faversham .

Kent .

• 53

Folkestone

,, .....

Fordington .

Dorchester

• 54

Finedon

Northamptonshire

1 7

Hadleigh

Suffolk ....

• 7 1

Harwich .

Essex .

OO"

Hastings

Sussex ....

• 32

Hertford .

Higham Ferrers .

Northamptonshire

. 86

Hove ....

Sussex .....

Irthlingboro’

Northamptonshire

• 3i

Kenilworth

Warwickshire

Landport

Hants . . 1, 30,

43, 56, 59

Leamington

Leicester

. 61, 85

TNDEX.

Leighton Buzzard .

Beds ....

(

Lillington .

Warwickshire .

Littlehampton

Sussex ....

London ....

Abney Park

58,

,, ...

Bunhill Fields

■ 37,

66,

,, ....

High gate . . 16, 41,

47, 64,

70,

,, ...

Kensal Green . 78,

79, 80,

82.

Nunhead .

62,

79,

Luton

Beds ....

Maldon ....

Essex

Market Harboro’ .

Leicestershire

14, 15,

16,

Melford

Suffolk

Millbrook.

Southampton

Newhaven

Sussex

76,

N EWMARKET

Cambs ....

Newport

Isle of Wight .

Northampton .

Nuneaton

Warwickshire .

Peterboro’

Portland

Dorset

Preston

Rugby ....

Warwickshire .

Saffron Walden

Essex ....

Salisbury

Sevenoaks .

Kent ....

SlTTINGBOURNE

» *

5‘

St. Ives

Cambs ....

Stratford-on-Avon

81,

8’J

Taunton .

Somerset

35,

Tunbridge Wells

I •

Waterbeach

Cambs ....

. 18,

19,

Waltham Abbey .

Essex

Wellingboro’ .

Northamptonshire

. 12,

13,

Weston-super-Mare .

Somerset .

Whitwick .

Leicestershire.

69,

In LANDPORT CEMETERY, HANTS.

^^lvary^t^

>W SHORT

HOW LONG

Jit Iftemovi) of
REBECCA,

The Affectionate Wife of
WILLIAM SMITH, Senr,
whose transition from Earth to join
the blood bought throng, took place
according to Eternal Destination on the
22nd day of March, 1843, in the 57th
year of her age.

To know her worth read the last six verses in the last
chapter of Proverbs.

CHICHESTER CATHEDRAL YARD.

1840.

ON A CHILD, AGED 15 MONTHS.

He woke, and took life’s cup to sip,
Too bitter ’twas to drain ;

He meekly put it from his lip,

And went to sleep again.

In EASTBOURNE CHURCHYARD.

JUNE 1st 1855.

ON A CHILD, AGED 6 YEARS.

When the first wild thrill is past,

Of anguish and despair ;

To lift the eye of Faith to Heaven,
And think “ My Child is there,”
This best can dry the gushing tear,
This yield the heart relief;

Until the Christian’s pious hope
O’ercomes the Parent’s grief.

The Poetry of Piety. — F.M.

the Cloisters of CHICHESTER CATHEDRAL.

Jit JRemorg of

CAPTN THOMAS ALLEN

late Commander of his Majesty’s Ship
BRITANNIA,

on whose brave & benevolent Spirit
on the 23rd Jany {781 in the 55th Year
of his age, The Curtain of this
World’s Stage untimely drop1-

Beneath is deposited
all that was mortal of

RICHARD SMITH GENT-

The immortal part is gone
Thro’ the merits of a crucified Redeemer
to join its great original in Heaven.
This awful change was on
the 4th day of Septr 1 767.

After a life of Sixty Three Years.

In BURY ST. EDMUNDS CHURCHYARD

Here lies interred the Body of

MARY HASELTON,

A Young Maiden of this Town,

Born of Roman Catholic Parents,

And virtuously brought up ;

Who being in the act of Prayer
Repeating her Vespers,

Was instantaneously killed by a flash
Of lightning, August the 16th 1785.

- Aged 9 Years. -

Not Siloams tower the Victims slew,

Because above the many sinned the few,

Nor here the fated lightning wreaked its rage,

By Vengeance sent for crimes matured by age :

The little suppliant with its hands upreared,
Address’d her God in prayers the Priest had taugl
His mercy prayed, and His protection sought;

Learn Reader hence, that Wisdom to adore
Thou canst not scann : & fear his boundless Power
Safe shalt thou be if thou perform’st His will,

Blest if he spares, and more blest should He kill.

In BURY ST. EDMUNDS CHURCHYARD.

In IPnwrg af

MICHAEL FALLICK,

who died 22nd Octr 1807.

Aged 54 Years.

Here lie the Husband of a Loving Wife,

She lost all earthly comfort when he
lost his life.

A sudden death a shocking sight to see,

His last life’s blood was sprinkled
over she,

The King immortal gave a sudden stroke,
He heaved a sigh and a blood vessel broke.
He was an Honest and upright Man,

Boast more ye great ones if you can.

In BRIGHTON CHURCHYARD.

lit ittotmi jof

PHCEBE H ESSEL

IAL1

who was bom at Stepney in the year 1713.
She served for many years
as a private Soldier in the 5* Regt of Foot
in different parts of Europe
and in the Year 1745 fought under the Commar
of the Duke of Cumberland
at the BATTLE OF FONTENOY,
when she received a bayonet wound in her arm.

Her long life which commenced in the time of
OUEEN ANNE,
extended to the reign of
• GEORGE IV;

by whose munificence she received comfort
and support in her latter years.

She died at Brighton where she had long resided

Decr 12th 1821 : Aged 108 Years.

ifl

In BRIGHTON CHURCHYARD.

P. • M. • S.

APT NICHOLAS TETTERSELL THROUGH WHOSE PRUDENCE
ALOUR AN LOYALTY CHARLES THE SECOND KING OF
NGLAND AND AFTER HE HAD ESCAPED THE SWORD
F HIS MERCILESS REBELLS AND HIS FFORCES RECEIUED A
ATALL OUERTHROWE AT WORCESTER SEPT* 3? 165 I
7 AS FFAITHFULLY • PRESERUED -AND CONUEYED INTO
RANCE DEPARTED THIS 'LIFE THE 26™ DAY OF JULY 1674

WITHIN THIS MARBLE MONUMENT DOTH LYE
.PPROUED FFAITH HONOR AND LOYALTY
N THIS COLD CLAY HE HATH NOW TANE UP HIS STATION
IT ONCE PRESERUED YE CHURCH THE CROUNE AND NATION
11 VHEN CHARLES YE GREATE WAS NOTHING BUT A BREATH
'HIS UALIANT -SOULE STEPT BETWEENE HIM AND DEATH
JSURPERS THREATS NOR TYRANT REBELLS FROUNE
:OULD -NOT AFRRIGHT HIS DUTY TO THE CROWNE
VHICH GLORIOUS -ACT OF HIS FOR CHURCH AND STATE
:IGHT PRINCES IN ONE DAY DID GRATULATE
’ROFESSING ALL TO HIM IN DEBT TO BEE
IS ALL THE WORLD ARE TO HIS MEMORY
INCE EARTH COULD NOT REWARD HIS WORTH HAUE G1UEN
IEE NOW RECEIUES IT FROM THE KING OF HEAUEN

C"\

On.

N THE SAME CHEST ONE JEWEL MORE YOU HAUE
THE PARTENER OF HIS ■ UERTUES BED AND GRAUE
5USANNA HIS WIFE WHO DECESED YE 4T.H DAY OF MAY 1672
TO WHOSE PIOUS MEMORY AND HIS OWN HONO11 NICHOLAS
THEIRE ONLY SON AND IUST INHERITE OF HIS FFATHERS
UERTUES HATH PAYD HIS LAST DUTY IN THIS MONUMENT

I 676

-IERE ALSO • LIETH INTERRED THE BODY OF CAPTAIN
NICHOLAS TETTERSELL HIS SON WHO DEPARTED THIS
.IFE THE FOURTH OF THE CALENDS OF OCTOBER
I7OI IN THE 57 YEAR OF HIS AGE

In EASTBOURNE CHURCHYARD, SUSSEX.

Near this place are deposited
the Remains of

ELIZABETH the Wife of WM KNIGHT

who departed this life on the Sixteenth day of June
one Thousand Seven Hundred and Ninety Three
Aged Sixty Four Years
Whose

Uniformity of good Conduct sanctioned
General Respect,

Whose

Disinterested attachment to the Family
in which

(She lived upwards of Twenty Five Years)
Claims their
Particular Regret :

She lived

Earnestly ambitious to deserve the Character
of

A Faithful Servant,

She died

Contentedly possessed of it ;

Approved by all,

Equalled by few,

Excelled by none.

If there be a Character more nearly approaching perfection, it is

very rare.

F. M.

In HIGH STREET, BRENTWOOD, ESSEX

TO THE PIOUS MEMORY OF

WILLIAM HUNTER

A NATIVE OF BRENT-WOOD

WHO MAINTAINING HIS RIGHT
TO SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES
AND IN AIL MATTERS OF FAITH AND PRACTICE
TO FOLLOW THEIR SOLE GUIDANCE
WAS CONDEMNED AT THE EARI Y AGE OF NINETEEN
BY BISHOP BONNER IN THE REIGN OF QUEEN MARY
AND BURNED AT THE STAKE
NEAR THIS SPOT
MARCH XX VI MDLV

HE YIELDED UP HIS LIFE FOR THE TRUTH
SEALING IT WITH HIS BI OOD
TO THE PRAISE OF GOD.

ERECTED BY PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION
1861

In CHELMSFORD CHURCHYARD, ESSEX.

Reader — if thou art fatherless, revere
This sacred spot — A Father lieth here,
Enough why bare an aching heart to thee ?
Thou knowest, fcelest all my agony.

STEPHEN DEAN

Born December 17th 1772
Died August 15th 1832

His enemy might write his epitaph,

Still would his spirit -based on rectitude,
Stand firm — Integrity’s Colossus o’er
Slander’s eternal stream — beyond all reach.

In CHELMSFORD CHURCHYARD, ESSEX.

CHARLES JOHN DEAN

Born Decr io — 1816.

Died Augc 26 — 1846.

Life Came — how ? whence ? None save its Fount may tell,
It Went — as moments vanish, which though gone,

Are Still a part of the inscrutable
Eternity, and circle round its throne,

A chain from which no link hath ever flown :

And may not Everlasting Life too claim
It’s emanations — harvest from the sown —

Spray from It’s water-drops — light from It’s flame —
As glorious rainbows rise where darkest clouds first came.

In WELLINGBORO’ CHURCHYARD.

This is the last
Respect
to

JANE

The Beloved
Daughter of

Thomas & Jane Colson
who died Novr 28th
1857.

Aged 26 Years.

Mother I’m dying now :

There is a deep sensation in my breast,

As if some heavy hand my bosom press’d,
And on my brow

I feel the cold sweat stand :

My lips grow dry & tremulous & my breath
Comes feebly up, Oh ; tell me is this death :
Mother, your hand.

In WELLINGBORO’ CHURCHYARD.

ON A CHILD AGED 16.

1857.

She is gone, they say, of our
lovely child,

With heart so loving, with
look so mild,

Not gone from Memory, not
gone from love,

But gone to our Father’s

house above.

In TUNBRIDGE WELLS CEMETERY.

1858.

We mourn for those who weep,

Whom stern afflictions bend

With anguish o’er the lowly sleep

Of Brother, or of Friend,

But they to whom the sway

Of pain and grief is o'er,

Whose tears our God hath wiped away,

Oh mourn for them no more.

In MARKET HARBORO’ CEMETERY.

wibiks ^

Beneath this Stone lies interred
the Remains of

DEBORAH

Late Wife of W. Harrod Junr Printer,
who died the 18th of June 1808.

Aged Sixty Years.

Here Reader, Pause, and if the icy hand of
DEATH

Has ever snatched from thee the tender Parent,
Sincere Friend, or Loving Partner who was the
Calmer of thy Sorrows, in the rugged path
of life by pointing thee the way to Heaven,
here pause, think of thy loss, let fall the
swelling Tear, for know each Character thou
mournest was here combined in one.

In MARKET HARBORO’ CEMETERY.

$n gtmarg

OF SAMUEL TURNER, Painter,

Who was born at a lone House, in
the Parish of Harrington, in the
County of Northampton.

His Occupation a Shepherd,

His amusements were the beautiful scenes
of NATURE,

His retirements, the Study of
Surveying, Dialing Engraving &c.

In the 35th Year of his Age he removed to
Mt- Harboro’ and changed the Cottage for
the Shop, and the Crook for the Pencil,

His works that are left will show his abilities.
He travelled through a rough, and rugged
Road of affliction and Died, in hopes of a
HAPPY ETERNITY
The 13th Day of Feby 1784
Aged 67.

In MARKET HARBORO’ CEMETERY.

- 1841. -

The Churchyard bears an added Stone,
The Fireside shows a Vacant Chair ;
Here Sadness dwells and weeps alone,

And Death displays his Banners there ;
The Life is gone, the breath has fled,
And what has been, no more shall be ;
The well known form, the welcome tread,
Oh ! where are they ? and where is he ?

In HIGHGATE CEMETERY, LONDON.

Another Spirit has fled,

And the Clay gathered to the tomb,
Amidst those loved ones
Who had before passed away.

Oh ! may a Father,

By the mercy of
The great ruling power of all,
Look down from the Spirit land,
Watch over and direct
The frail mortal actions of
A Bereaved and Devoted Son.

Which is better to rely on — the Spirit of a Father, or the

Father of Spirits ?

F. M.

This is a reduced Copy of Rubbing taken in 1863. — F.M.

In HARWICH CHURCHYARD, ESSEX.

- —18 5 0. -

While bending o’er the funeral Urn,

Our weeping hearts with anguish mourn,

And wounded spirits seek relief
In trickling tears and silent grief,

How sweet to raise the weeping eye
To tearless mansions in the sky;

Where those we lov’d are gone before,

To feel the parting pang no more ;

But sweeter still the Hope Divine,

That we, e’er long, with them shall join ;

His never ceasing praise to swell,

Whose Wisdom has done all things well.

In WATERBEACH CHURCHYARD, CAMBS.

Jfit HTtmorir of

JOHN MASON,

who died June 12th 1805.

To expiate your sins make no delay,

Lest unprepared you are summoned away,
And like me be laid in a cold bed of clay.

In WATERBEACH CHURCHYARD, CAMBS.

THIS GRAVE
contains the mortal part of

CATHERINE BENSTEAD

who before her death sought the
Lord Jesus in secret & found pardon
and peace, She Died Octr 9th> 1814
Aged i i Years.

As some fair flower that hid in leafy green,
Imbibes the dew of Heaven and blooms unseen,
Till fragrance strange — unto the passer by,

Reveals the secret of its birthplace nigh :

So Catherine lived, & sought the Lord alone,

Her griefs peculiar, & her joys unknown,

A change divine soon met the wondering eye,

And told the employment of her privacy :

Fain would we long have gazed, but God removed
To holier happier scenes, the child He loved.

c 2

In WATERBEACH CHURCHYARD, CAMBS.

- 1853. -

Farewell but not for ever ; hope replies,

Trace but his steps and meet him in the skies ;
There nothing shall renew our parting pain,

Thou shalt not wither, nor we weep again.

In HERTFORD CHURCHYARD.

Jtt Pemorg of

SAMU.EL BATES

Aged 65,

Who departed this life March 13th 1858.

A SOLDIER OF JESUS
I’m billeted here by Death,

And quartered to remain,

When the last trumpet sounds,

I shall rise and march again.

What I was

The Judgement Day will best make known ;

Reader what art thou ?

- -

In PETERBORO’ CATHEDRAL YARD.

Youth Builds for Age, Age Builds for Rest,

They who Build for Heaven Build Best.

In WOODSTONE CHURCHYARD, near PETERBORO’.

. 1778 .

O Vain Man, a mark for Malice, thy
Glory a blaze, thy time a Span, thyself
a Bubble, is born crying, Lives laughing,
and dies groaning.

Who then to vain Mortality shall trust,

But Limns the Water, or but writes in Dust.

In PETERBORO’ CEMETERY.

. i860 .

Afflicted by our loss we lay thee here
In silent sorrow : E’en thy dust is dear ; •

For never child shall weep nor neighbour bend
O’er kinder parent or more faithful friend.

In BRADING CHURCHYARD, ISLE OF WIGHT.

SACRED

TO THE MEMORY OF

u Little

who died 3ot.h Jany 1799.
in the 15 th Year
of her age.

Ye who the power of God delight to trace,

And mark with joy each monument of grace,

Tread lightly o’er this grave, as ye explore
“ The short & simple annals of the poor.”

A Child reposes underneath this sod,

A Child to Memory dear, and dear to God,
Rejoice ! yet shed the sympathetic tear,

Jane “the Young Cottager” lies buried here,

Those who have read the Rev. Leigh Richmond’s “ Annals of the
Poor” will be interested in this and the following Epitaph. — F.M.

In ARRETON CHURCHYARD, ISLE OF WIGHT.

THE MEMORY OF

ELIZABETH WALLB RIDGE,

“ The Dairyman’s Daughter ”
who died May 30th 1801,

Aged 31 Years.

“ She being dead yet speaketii.”

Stranger ! if e’er by chance or feeling led,

Upon this hallowed turf thy footsteps tread,

Turn from the contemplation of this sod,

And think on her whose Spirit rests with God.
Lowly her lot on earth, but He who bore
Tidings of grace and blessings to the poor,

Gave her His truth, & faithfulness, to prove
The dearest treasures of his boundless love ;

Faith that dispelled affliction’s darkest gloom,
Hope, that could cheer the passage to the tomb,
Peace, that not Hell’s dark legions could destroy,
And love, that filled the soul with heavenly joy.
Death of ifs sting disarm’d, she knew no fear,
But tasted Heaven, while she lingered here.

Oh ! happy Saint, may we like thee be blest,

In life be faithful, and in death find rest.

In CARISBROOKE CHURCHYARD, ISLE OF WIGHT.

On JAMES FLUX Aged 80,

Died 1851.

And MARY his Wife Aged 74,

Died 1844.

We leave you here our friends so dear
Whom we so much love,

And soon we hope to meet again
Where parting is no more.

A tender Father and loving Mother who left behind
Ten children living of their own,

Grandchildren they left fifty-nine,

And Great Grandchildren fifty-one.

In ST. IVES CHURCHYARD, CAMBS.

- 1 8 5 7. -

A Day, and our Joys may be fled,

A Night, and our Griefs may be o’er,
An Hour, and we join with the dead,
A Moment, and we are no more.

In SAFFRON WALDEN CHURCHYARD, ESSEX.

DUDLEY ADCOCK SPICER

Wife of the above,

Born Decr 28* 1790. Died Sept1; 15^ 1852.
ALSO OF THEIR CHILDREN,

Matthew W.

Spicer

Born

Sept*

28.

1812

Died

May

Sarah W.

Spicer

Feb?

26.

1814

June

1814

Richard

Spicer

Nov?

14.

1815

IS-

1830

Dudley

Spicer

July

20.

1818

26.

1827

Harriett

Spicer

Aug?

10.

1820

Feb?

cr\

Sarah

Spicer

May

1822

Mar.

10.

1823

William

Spicer

Feb?

21.

1824

Sept?

1824

George S.

Spicer

Sept?

21.

Dec?

3i-

1844

Susannah

Spicer

May

3°-

1827

Oct?

1838

Richard

Spicer

Oct?

3°-

1830

May

1833

Dud ley

Spicer

» •

June

13-

1832

1833

Also Jane Wife of Matthew Spicer,

And Daughter of W™ Low of this Town,
Who Died Octr 13^ 1852 Aged 37.

In MALDON CHURCHYARD, ESSEX.

E’en Jesus wept at Lazarus’ Grave,

And may not we now weep at thine ;
Not sorrowing hopeless, the Lord who gave
His will be done, not mine.

In MELFORD CHURCHYARD, SUFFOLK, 1846.

Remember man whoe’er thou art,

Not he who act the greatest part,

But he who act the best will be
The happiest man eternally.

A Specimen of Suffolk Idiom. — F.M.

In BIGGLESWADE CHURCHYARD, BEDS., 1856.

He trod earth’s soil, & shared the common lot,
Declined & sank, but not to be forgot ;

For long his name upon this humble stone
To his fond memory set, may yet make known,
That some with sweet remembrance oft imprest,
Will come & notice where his body rests.

In BROMLEY CHURCHYARD, KENT.

Near this Place lies the Body of

ELIZABETH MONK,

She was the widow of John Monk of this Parish, Blacksmith,
her second Husband ;

who departed this life on the 27th day of August, 1753.
Aged ioi.

To whom she had been a Wife near 50 Years,

By whom she had no children,

And of the issue of the first marriage, none lived to the

second :

BUT VIRTUE

would not suffer her to be childless,

An infant, to whom, and to whose Father and Mother she
had been Nurse,

(such is the uncertainty of temporal prosperity,)
became dependent upon Strangers for the maintenance

of life ;

To him she afforded the protection of a Mother ;

This Parental Charity was returned with Filial Affection,
And she was supported in the fulness of Age,

By him whom she had cherished in the
helplessness of infancy.

LET IT BE REMEMBERED

that there is no station in which Industry will not obtain
Power to be liberal,

Nor any Character on which Liberality will not confer

Honour.

She had long been prepared by a simple and unaffected
Piety for that awful
Moment, which, however delayed
is universally sure :

How few are allowed an equal time for Probation ;

How 'many, by their lives, appear to presume upon more.

To preserve the memory of the Person, but yet more to
perpetuate the lesson of her life, This Stone was erected
by Voluntary Contributions.

In LANDPORT CEMETERY, HANTS.

She was — What ?

What a Wife should Be,

She was that.

RICHARD GOODRIDGE

Husband of the above
Died December 4th 1840.

Aged 58 years.

In ALVERSTOKE CEMETERY, HANTS.

- 18 5 8 -

ON A CHILD AGED 10 MONTHS.

On life’s wild ocean, tempest tossed & pained,
How many voyagers their course perform ;

This little bark a kinder fate obtained,

It reached the Haven e’er it met the storm.

In IRTHLINGBORO’ CHURCHYARD, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE.

This Stone

is Erected to Perpetuate
the Memory of

MARY SUMPTER

(Relict of

Thomas Freeman Sumpter),
who died January 30th 1843,

Aged 84 Years.

- Reader -

If thou knowest her faults be very careful to avoid them,

If thou knowest her virtues labour earnestly to imitate them,
And whatever was wanting to complete her character,
strive to perfect in your own ;
Remembering in every instance to apply daily, & fervently,

To God

For his assisting grace & guidance.

Many long Sermons contain less practical precept. — F. M.

In ST. PHILIP’S CHURCHYARD, BIRMINGHAM.

1835

Keep Death & Judgement always in your eye ;
None are fit to live who are not fit to die ;
Make use of present time, because you must
Take up your lodging shortly in the dust ;

’Tis dreadful to behold the setting sun,

And night approaching, e’er your work is done.

In ALL SAINTS CHURCHYARD, HASTINGS.

1850.

ON A YOUNG WOMAN AGED 27.

Yea speedily was she taken away,
lest that wickedness should alter
her Understanding, or Deceit
beguile her Soul.

Apocrypha, Wisdom 4 and 1

In NEWMARKET CEMETERY.

- i 8 6 i -

ON A CHILD AGED 14 MONTHS.

Thrice happy — that our Infant bears
To Heaven no darkening stains of sin,
And only breathed life’s morning airs,
Before its noonday storms begin.

In HOVE CHURCHYARD, SUSSEX.

THIS STONE
is erected by the Friends of

ABNER RUTLAND

who was unfortunately drowned
whilst Bathing,
on the 26th of June 1856.

Aged 23 Years.

In an instant I sank ’neath the shadow of Death,
And Eternity round me arose,

O Reader remember that life is a breath,

And a breath may bring thine to a close.

In TAUNTON CHURCH, SOMERSET.

Sacred

To the Memory of MOSES COTTLE

Who died 15^ Nov' 1789. Aged 35.

Did’st thou know him Reader ?

If thou didst not
Know this,

He was a Tender Husband,
a social friend,

And an Honest Man.

In BRIDPORT CHURCHYARD, DORSET.

- 1835. -

No age or station is secure,

The Old, the Young, the Rich, the Poor,

Alike by Death are snatched away,

Without distinction or delay,

To mingle with their native clay,

And wait their final Judgement Day.

n 2 35

In DUNSTABLE CHURCHYARD, BEDS.

In Memory of JOHN DARLEY

who' died March 23rd 1845 Aged 88 Yrs

Worn out with Labour, & with age oppress’d,
Beneath this Hallow’d Ground in peace I rest ;

The Immortal part as fled beyond the Skie,

Only the Body can be said to Die ;

When the last trump shall sound it rais’d shall be
To join the Soul throughout Eternity.

Beloved friends that do your loss deplore,

Remember I am only gone before ;

Let not this World your whole attention have,

For know ye not your trav’ling to the Grave.

In BRIDPORT CHURCHYARD, DORSET.

ON A CHILD AGED 5 YEARS.

A highly favoured probationer,
Accepted without being exercised.

In BUNHILL FIELDS CEMETERY, LONDON.

j <2> G?,,

MISS ANN DAVIS,

Who died Feby 2^tl1 1803.

Aged 21 Years.

Go ! spotless Honor, and unsullied Truth ;

Go! smiling Innocence, and blooming Youth;

Go ! Female Softness, -joined with Manly Sense ;

Go ! winning Wit, that never gave Offence ;

Go ! soft Humanity, that bless’d the Poor,

Go ! Saint-eyed Patience, from Affection’s Door,

Go! Modesty, that never wore a Frown,

Go ! Virtue, and receive thy Heavenly Crown.

In the same, 1767.

Here rests a woman good without pretence,

Blest with plain Reason and with sober Sense ;

So unaffected so composed a mind,

So firm yet soft, so strong yet so resigned ;

Heaven as its purest gold by Tortures try'd ;

The Saint sustained it, but the Woman Dy’d.

In BASINGSTOKE CEMETERY, HANTS.

MEMORY OF

ANTHONY CURTIS

who died April 1 1 1787.

Aged 77 Years.

This world’s a City full of crooked streets,

And death the Market place where all men meets,
If life was Merchandize that men could buy,

The rich would live and none but poor would die.

In MILLBROOK CHURCHYARD, near Southampton.

ON ELIZA NEWMAN. DIED 1772.

Like a tender Rose Tree was my spouse to me,

Her offspring Pluckt, to long deprived of life is she,
Three went before, Her Life went with the Six,

I stay with the 3 Our sorrows for to mix,

Till Christ our only hope Our Joys doth Fix.

In BRIGHTON CHURCHYARD.

Co tbc IHemorg of

THOMAS WILSON,

of London who was drowned
while bathing in the Sea,
on the morning of the 5th of August
1785-

Aged 43 Years.

- * - — -

To live each moment Reader be thy care,

To live as seeing Him who sees unseen,

Live so prepared that when He calls thee hence,
The soul may spotless stand on Zion’s Hill.

Who lives by Faith, who every moment hangs
With firm reliance on his atoning Lord,

Can never be dismayed at sudden death,

Or heedless launch into a world unknown.

The mortal part ’tis true may sink in waves,

Or sleeping lye to moulder in the dust,

The particle divine ascends on high,

To swim in Oceans of Eternal Bliss.

In MARKET HARBOROUGH CEMETERY.

- 1 8 3 6. -

Both old & young O Death, must yield to thee,
And day by day, thy powerful arm we see,

In vain the tear, in vain the heartfelt sigh,

All that are born to live, are born to die.

In HARWICH CHURCHYARD, ESSEX.

1 82 2.

ON A SAILOR.

Though Boreas’ blasts & Neptune’s waves
Have tos’t me to and fro’,

Yet at the last, by God’s decree,

I Harbour here below :

While here I at an anchor ride,

With many of our fleet,

Yet once again I shall set sail,

Our Admiral Christ to meet.

In HIGHGATE CEMETERY, LONDON.

Life’s like a Winter’s Day,

Some only Breakfast and away,

Others to Dinner stay and are full fed;

The oldest one but Sups and goes to Bed;
Wretched is he that lingers out the day,

He that goes the soonest has the least to pay.

The private sleeping chamber of
Richard Hislop, Islington.

Some years after copying this I saw the stone again, but there was still
no further inscription. — F. M.

In LEAMINGTON CEMETERY.

CHARLES CLARKSON BROOKER

Died at Sea, 1854.

Far, Far he lies from holy ground,

Deep in his coral bed,

The seaweeds wrap his corse around,

The dark waves over head ;

Yet shall as here, when trump shall sound,
And sea gives up her dead,

The Glorious bodies of the just
Wake from corruption as from dust.

ELIZA CLARKSON BROOKER

Sister of the above
Died at Leamington, 1855.

Much as we loved thee, to our bitter cost
Alas, how much we knew not till we lost !
Oh, say not lost ! she dead in Jesus sleep,
And not for them but for ourselves we weep.

In LANDPORT CEMETERY, HANTS.

SACRED

to the memory of

GEORGE THOMAS MEAD DODD,

Son of Samuel, & Mary Dodd ;
who died 3r.d Jany 1843. Aged 15 Years.

The memory of two Brothers on this stone is inscribed,
Not favord as some are to lie side by side,

One lies beneath, in his own happy land,

While the other sleeps yonder, on Africa’s Strand.

Also, SAMUEL ISAAC MEAD DODD,

Brother of the above ;
who died 5^ July 1850. Aged 25 Years.

Weep ye not for the dead, neither bemoan
him, but weep sore for him that goeth away, for he
shall return no more, nor see his native country.

22 Chapter Jeremiah, 10 Verse.

But now he is dead, wherefore shall I fast ? Can I
bring him back again ? I shall go to him, but he shall
not return to me.

12 Chap. 2nd Book Sami 23 Ver.

In the South Aisle of CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL.

[Date completely effaced by the Hand of Timel\

He that’s imprison’d in this narrow roome

Wer’t not for cvstome needs nor verse nor toombe

Nor can from theise a memorie be lent

To him who must be his toombs monvment

And by the Virtve of his lasting fame

Must make his toombe live long not it

his fame

For when this Gavdie Monvment is gone
Children of th’ vnborne world shall spye
y Stone

That covers him and to their FFellowes crye
’Tis Here ’tis Here About Barkley doth lye
To build his toombe then is not thought soe safe
Whose vertve mvst ovt live his Epitaphe

44’

In TAUNTON CHURCH, SOMERSET.

■

[Under a full-length Figure , life size.]

Consecrated to the Blessed Memory of
Robert Grave Esq. and Founder.

Taunton Bore Him, London Bred Him.

Piety Trained Him, Virtue Led Him.

Taunton Blest Him, London Blest Him.

This Thankful Town, That Mindful City,
Share His Piety, and His Pity.

What He Gave, and How He Gave It,

Ask The Poor, and You Shall Have It.
Gentle Reader, Heaven May Strike
Thy Tender Heart To Do The Like, —

Now Thine Eyes Have Read The Story,
Give Him The Praise, & Heaven The Glory.

Anno. Dom. 1635.

• 45

iEtatis. Sve. 65

In BROXBOURNE CHURCHYARD, HERTS.

Here Slumber
the mortal remains of

ELIZA,

for nine years the faithful
and affectionate Wife of
Joseph Paul,

to whom she bore six children,
the youngest

of which rests with its Mother.

She died June 23rJ 1835.

Aged 27 Years.

“ Ce Qu’est ecrit, est ecrit ”

“Nos Journees sont complees ’’

“ I remember Thee, the kindness
of thy youth, the love of thine espousals,
when thou wentest after me in the wilderness,
in a land that was not sown.” *

* Great poetic feeling is displayed in the adaptation of this
quotation. — F.M.

In HIGHGATE CEMETERY, LONDON.

LILLYWHITE,

Born June 1792. Died Augs? si5? 1854.

A name to be remembered long as
THE NATIONAL GAME OF ENGLAND,
By the practice and tuition
of which for years he earned
an honest livelihood ;
rarely has man received
more applause in his vocation :
few have ministered to more happy hours.

From an humble station he achieved
A WORLD WIDE REPUTATION,
Teaching both by precept and example,

A SPORT

in which the blessings of youthful strength
and spirits may be most innocently employed
to the exercise of the mind,
the discipline of the temper,
and the general improvement of the man.

THIS MONUMENT
. testifies the respect of the Noblemen
and Gentlemen of the Marylebone Cricket Club,
and of many private friends,

TO ONE WHO DID HIS DUTY,
in that state of life
to which it had pleased God to call
him.

In KENILWORTH CHURCHYARD, WARWICKSHIRE.

S a c v $ d

To the Wemortj. of

LUKE STURLEY,

who held the Office of Parish
Clerk upwards of 60 Years,
he died Febx 13* 1843.

The Graves around for many a year
Were dug by him who slumbers here,

Till worn with age he dropped his spade,
And in this dust his bones were laid,

As he now mouldering shares the doom
Of those he buried in the tomb,

So will his body too with theirs arise
To share the judgement of the skies.

Her zealovs care to serve ber God
Her constant love to hvsband deare
Her harmeles harte to everie one
Doth live althovgh her corps lye bere
God gravnte vs all while glasse doth rv

TO LIVE IN CHUST AS SEE HATH DONNE
Ann Sewell y wife of Willm Sewellof this cytty Vint

NER DEPTED THIS LIFE Y 20 OF DICEM : 1609 : OF THE AGE OF
46 • YEARES 5 AN HVMBLE FOLLOWER OF HER SAVIOVR CHRIST
AND A WORTHY STIRROR VP OF OTHERS TO ALL HOLY VERTVES

Copied from a Rubbing taken in 1862. — F.M.

In ASTON CHURCHYARD, BIRMINGHAM.

Sacred.

TO THE MEMORY OF

JOHN DOWLER,

late of Castle Bromwich, who
departed this life Dec1; 6* 1787.

Aged 42

My Sledge & Hammer lie reclined,

My Bellows too have lost their Wind ;
My Fire’s extinct, my Forge decayed,
And in the Dust my Vice is laid ;

My Coal is spent, my Iron’s gone,

My Nails are drove, my Work is done.

In RUGBY CHURCHYARD.

Jn Uteniorj) o(

JOHN COLLIS Husband of

ELIZ: COLLIS who lived in
Wedlock together 50 years,
he served as Parish Clerk 41 years,
and Died June I9f.h 1781 Aged 69 years.

Him who covered up the Dead,

Is himself laid in the same bed,

, I

Time with his crooked Scythe hath made
Him lay his mattock down and spade ;
May he and we all rise again
To everlasting life, Amen.

In FOLKESTONE CHURCHYARD, KENT.

Memory of

REBECCA ROGERS

who died Aug1. 22n.d 1688.

Aged 44 Years.

A House She hath, its made of such good fashion,
The Tenant ne’er shall pay for reparation :

Nor will her Landlord ever raise her rent,

Or turn her out of doors for non-payment :

From Chimney Money to this cell is free,

To such a House who would not Tenant be.

In ST. MARTIN’S, SALISBURY.

18 2 6.

Farewell Vain world I’ve had enough of thee,

And value not what thou canst say of me ;

Thy smiles I court not, nor thy frowns I fear,

All’s one to me, my head lies quiet here,

What faults thou’st seen in me take care to shun, f
And look at home there’s something to be done.
—

In FAVERSHAM CHURCHYARD, KENT.

ON THREE CHILDREN.

185 6. 1858. 18 62.

"Who plucked my choicest flowers,” the gardener cried,

“ The Master did,” a well-known voice replied ;

“ Tis well! they all are His” the gardener said,

And meekly bowed his reverential head.

In WALTHAM ABBEY CHURCHYARD, ESSEX.

18 34.

Ye proud, ambitious, wealthy, young, & gay ;

Who drink the spirit of the golden day ;

And triumph in existence, come with me,

And in the mouldering corpse your picture see ;
What you and all must soon or later be :

When this our short & fleeting life is o’er,

We die to live, and live ! to die no more.

In FORDINGTON CHURCHYARD, DORCHESTER.

fit ||t cm or it of

JOHN HAYNES,

Aged 77. Died 1799.

As those we love decay, we die in part,

String after String is severed from the Heart,

Till loosened life’s at last but
crumbling clay,

Without one pang is glad to fall away,

Unhappy he who latest feels the blow,

Whose eyes have wept o’er every friend laid low,
Dragged lingering on from partial
Death, to Death,

Till dying, all he can resign is breath.

In SITTINGBOURNE CHURCHYARD, KENT.

ANN BALLARD, Widow,

Died June 1805. Aged 72.

Poor Souls how strangely fond of life are we,

And who that sees this bed would change with me,
Yet gentle Reader, tell me, which is best,

A painful journey or a Place of Rest ?

My . otarted at my knell,

Amazed that I should be no more,

The Man they’d seen the day before ;

But what security is breath,

Against the uplifted hand of death ?

Not one is safe, not one secure,

Not one can tell his moments sure :

Be wise, & let that holy path be daily trod,

In which, without surprise, a man may meet his God.

In PRESTON CHURCHYARD, near Weymouth.

- 1851. -

All the Rivers run into the sea,
yet the sea is not full ; unto the
place from whence the rivers came,
thither they return again.

Ecclec ist Ver 7th

RICHARD x. .x-t

who departed this life Novi io'?1 1848.

Aged 87 Years.

also Mary Wife of the above,

who departed this life April 20* 1850.

Aged 81 Years.

“ They was what they was, what every
good Man and Woman ought to be ;

’ that was they.”

It is strange that such grammar should be perpetrated in 1850. — F.M.

In WELLINGBOROUGH CHURCH, 1861.

The way to life lies through death’s dreary gate,
All flesh must pass its portal.

Dust unto Dust is but the Body’s fate,

The Spirit is immortal.

This is by John Askham, the “ Wellingboro’ Poet,” a self-taught
man. — F.M.

NORTHAMPTON.

Here under lyeth

^OHN BAILES Born in this
Town he was above 126
years old & had his hearing
Sight and Memory to ye last
He lived in 3 Centurys
& was buried the 14th of Apr

1706.

E. B. & M. L. SCOTT,

of Dalston.

MARY HANNAH
Daughter of the above
was called hence
31st July 1858.

Aged 5 Years & 3 Months
Are you ready ?

MARY LING SCOTT
Was reunited to her Child
7th December 1859
Aged 31 Years.

Another Gem in the Saviour’s Crown,
Another soul in Heaven ;
Reader! will You be there?

In LANDPORT CEMETERY, HANTS.

This

Stone is erected
As a tribute of Affection
To the Memory of

SARAH

The agreeable Schoolmate,
Pleasant companion, faithful friend,
and affectionate Wife of
William Mitchell, Jun*
who departed this life on the
19^ day of May 1856.

Aged 41 years.

Thy voice is now silent, the hearth is now cold,

Where thy smile, & thy welcome, oft met me of old,

I miss thee, & mourn thee, in silence, unseen,

I dwell on the memory of joys that have been ;

But nor weeping nor memory afford me relief,

For my heart is bowed down with the weight of its grief.

I know that life’s trials with thee are all past,

That thy spirit with angels is happy at last ;

For mid scenes of the night when the world is at rest,

I list to thee singing the song of the blest ;

And thou know’st my belov’d one the first wish of my heart,
That soon again we may meet and never more part.

The poetry of affection. — F.M.

In the Porch of CATTISTOCK CHURCH, DORSETSHIRE.

18 0 0.

• ■ _ _ _ ~™.Smitten Friends

Are Angels sent on errands full of love,

For us they languish and for us they die ;

And shall they languish, shall they die in vain ?
Ungrateful, shall we grieve their hov’ring shades
Which wait the reformation in our hearts,

Shall we disdain their silent soft address,

Their posthumous advice and pious prayer ?

In CATTISTOCK CHURCHYARD.

17 81.

I Lodged have in many a Town,

And Traveled many a Year,

Till Age and Death have Brought me Down
To my Last Lodging here.

In LEIGHTON BUZZARD CHURCHYARD, BEDS.

- 1854. -

How short is life, how sure is death,
Our days alas how few,

This mortal life is but a breath,

’Tis like the morning dew.

In the CEMETERY, LEICESTER.

Saxrtb

TO THE MEMORY OF

CHARLES GREGORY,

WHO DIED OCT* 8T." 1 863,

Aged 76 Years.

Also

CHARLOTTE GREGORY,

Daughter of the above
WHO DIED OCT* 8™ 1863,

Aged 30 Years.

She nobly sacrificed her life in vainly
attempting to rescue her Father from poisonous
gas in a cistern, and thus ended a virtuous life
in an act of paternal affection.

They stood one moment in lifes glow,

The next both sire and child lay low :

He breathed the gas’s fatal breath,

She rushed to save but rushed to death :
We found her stretched upon his breast,
And thus we lay them down to rest :

And breathe our prayer in humble faith,

Be death in life their life in death.

In NUNHEAD CEMETERY, LONDON.

a C

TO THE MEMORY OF

JENNY VANCE STEVENS,

the Beloved Wife of
ALFRED VANCE STEVENS,

Comedian and Vocalist,

Died Octr. 20^ 1866.

Aged 25 Years.

- # -

Stay passer by, and let thy kindly glance
Rest on the early grave of Jenny Vance ;

A tender Mother, and a loving Wife,

Hers was a godly, and a happy life ;

A generous friend, she never had a foe ;

Not e’en King Death who laid her body low,

For by his stroke hath not the grim King given
Wings that a new fledged soul might fly to Heaven,
Power to a spirit to exulting sing,

“Where is thy Victory Grave, where Death thy sting”?
Halt then I pray, bestow a tender glance
Upon the tomb of Jenny Vance.

In ST. THOMAS’ CHURCHYARD, BIRMINGHAM.

Sacred to the Wemortj of

JAMES EADES,

Who departed this life Septr 3rd 1851,
in the 52nd year of his age.

While deeds Heroic are engraved in brass,

And Genius lives to fire the human mass ;

While polished bards in eulogistic verse
Of Kings & Princes, virtues rare rehearse ;

Be theirs the task who rear this stone, to blend,
Love for the Man, with friendship for the Friend,
To honour Worth, and reverence the Art,

Whose strains refine, while they exalt the Heart ;
To shew the meaning of the truth that shines
Revealed in Pope’s majestic deathless lines ;

“ A Wit’s a feather, and a Cheif a rod,

An Honest Man’s the noblest work of God.”

In HIGHGATE CEMETERY, LONDON.

Sacred to the affectionate Wemartj
of a dearly beloved
Friend and Companion,

JOHN ANTHONY COATES,

Son of J. A. Coates, Esqrfe
Buckingham ;

who died 17* August 1869,

Aged 36;

through an accidental fall
from a Window.

“ One shall be taken,

The other left.”

Matt :

“ Thy will be done O Lord.”

Hark what I tell to thee ;

Nor sorrow o’er the tomb,

My spirit wanders free,

And waits till thine shall come.

All pensive and alone,

I see thee sit and weep,
Thy head upon the stone,
Where my cold ashes sleep.

''t

g s s

^ <D

^ 8 r-s

*“d T *d ^ *a

s^ *>1

£/3

*! ^_q © ^

-3 00 fc y

fc *S

This is a reduced copy of a Rubbing taken in 1863. — F.M.

In BUNHILL FIELDS CEMETERY, LONDON.

ON A CHILD AGED 5 YEARS & 8 MONTHS.

- — 180 3. -

On some rude spot where common Herbage grows,
Perchance a violet rears its purple head,

Some careful Gardener plucks it ere it blows,

To spread and flourish in a nobler bed ;

Such was thy fate dear Child thy op’ning such,
Preeminence in early bloom was shewn,

Too good for earth perhaps, or lov’d too much,

Heaven saw and early marked thee for its own.

In LILLINGTON CHURCHYARD, WARWICKSHIRE.

Memory ni

WILLIAM TREEN,

WHO DIED 3 rd FEBy 1 8 10,

Aged 77 Years.

Poorly Lived, and Poorly Dyed,

Poorly Buried, and no one Cryed.

Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord.

In BUNHILL FIELDS CEMETERY, LONDON.

Here rests the Body

OF ANN J. HODGE,

Daughter of William R. Hodge, Esq'.

of the Island of Tortola :
who departed this Life May 7th 1804
Aged nearly 17

Whom it were unpardonable to lay down
in silence, and of whom it is difficult to
speak with justice ; for her just
character will look like flattery,
and the least abatement of it
is an injury to her memory.

Angels cannot snatch me from the Grave
neither can legions of Angels confine me here.

Reader see then that ye walk circumspectly,
for all must die, and after death comes the
judgement.

f 2

In NUNEATON CHURCHYARD, WARWICKSHIRE.

MEMORY OF

Fanny, Wife of

THOMAS BALL,

who departed this life

the 19^ April 1816,

Aged 65 Years r

and also of

Fanny, daughter of

THOMAS, & FANNY BALL,

who died Feby 4^ 1807,

Aged 7 Years.

As near unto this Gate we lie,

Pray think of death as you pass by,

And your own sins before it is too late,

That you may enter the Heavenly Gate ;

When death doth strike great will be your falls,

For you will be like to these poor Balls.

This Stone stands next one of the gates on entering. — F.M.

In ST. PHILIP’S CHURCHYARD, BIRMINGHAM.

$n Utemorg of

NANNETTA STOCKER,

who departed this life
May 4^ 1819,

Aged 39 Years

The smallest woman ever in
this kingdom, possessed
with every accomplishment,
only 33 inches high :
a Native of Austria.

On JAMES BARKER, who died 1781.

O cruel death how could you be so unkind
To take him before and leave me behind
You should have taken both of us if either
Which would have been more pleasing to the survivor

In WHITWICK CHURCHYARD, LEICESTERSHIRE.

- 1 7 9 9. -

Mild was his temper,
Solid was his Sense,

It was the will of God
To take him hence.

In HIGHGATE CEMETERY, LONDON.

- 1854. -

“ Who plucked this flower ? ” said the
Gardener, as he walked round his
garden : one of his fellow-labourers
said, “ It is the Master.”

The Gardener held his peace.

In ABNEY PARK CEMETERY, LONDON.

ON THREE CHILDREN WHO DIED IN 1862.

- — o — -

Angels of life and death alike are His
Without his leave they pass no threshold o’er,
Who then would wish, or dare, believing this,
Against the messengers to shut the door.

ON THE FAMILY GRAVE OF T. M. CUSHEE,

- 184S. -

They were, and having been, they are !
Earth but contains their mould’ring dust,
Their deathless spirits near, or far,

With thine must rise to meet the just.

In WHITWICK CHURCHYARD, LEICESTERSHIRE.

- 1 859. -

ON A CHILD AGED 2 YEARS.

O passing Stranger call this not
A place of fear and gloom,

I love to linger near the spot
It is my Infants tomb.

In ASTON CHURCHYARD, BIRMINGHAM.

- 1867. -

She died — Yet is not dead !

Ye saw a daisy on her tomb,

It bloomed to die — she died to bloom,
Her summer hath not sped.

In HADLEIGH CHURCHYARD, SUFFOLK.

- 1842. -

ON A CHILD, AGED 9 YEARS,

I give thee to my God that gave thee,

A wellspring of deep gladness to my heart,
And, precious as thou wert,

And pure as dew of Heaven, to Him I give
My own, my beautiful, my undefiled ;

And thou shalt be His child.

In BRIGHTON CHURCHYARD.

Sacred

TO THE MEMORY OF

SAKE DEEN MAHOMED,

of Patna Hindoostan
who died

on the 24* of Feby 1851.
Aged ioi Years.

The first to introduce Shampooing Baths. — F.M.

G. PEARCE, DROWNED 1817.

Aged 20.

His fate was hard but God’s decree
Was drown’d he should be in the sea.

1 71 3.

They were 2 Louing Sisters
who in this dust now ly, that
Uery day Anne was Buryd-
Elizabeth did dy

JOHN SMITH, died June 14th 1801. Aged 49 Years.
As a Parent, Husband, Friend, Nature might hold
him up, and say to all the World, this was a Man.

In CHRISTCHURCH CHURCHYARD, HANTS.

Copied from a Rubbing taken in 1863.

In BRIGHTON CHURCHYARD.

“ The Resurrection and the life
Am I : believe and die no more.”
Unchanged that voice — and though not yet
The dead sit up and speak,

Answering its call ; we gladlier rest
Our darlings on earth’s quiet breast,

And our hearts feel they must not break
For better they should rest awhile
Within the Church’s shade,

Than wander back to life, and lean
On our frail love once more.

ON A CHILD AGED 6 MONTHS.
1849.

- * -

She tasted of life’s bitter cup,

Refused to drink the potion up,

But turned her little head aside
Disgusted with the taste, and died.

Sweet babe no more, but seraph now,
Before the throne behold her bow,

Her soul enlarged to angel size
Joins in the triumph of the skies.

Hallelujah !

In the Chancel of LUTON CHURCH, BEDS.

Sacred txx the of

THEODOSIA MARY,

The Beloved and unceasingly lamented Wife
of Samuel Crawley of Stockwood Esqre
. By whom in admiration of her Virtues,
And out of respect to her Memory,
This Monument has been erected.

They were married June 19^ 1817,

She died Jany 3rd 1820, leaving one child.

Her Virtues were indeed of that Superior sort.

As to at once pronounce her to be the most perfect of beings,
Her faith and hope in Christ steadfast,

Her temper Angelic : Her Heart warm and affectionate ;
Her friendship sincere :

As a Wife and Mother She was a Pattern :

In a word she was faultless, matchless, without equal ;
And has left her husband inconsolable,
her infant her uniform Virtues,

The best inheritance.

She was indeed too good for this World,
And the Almighty claimed her as his own,
That he might confer upon her
The prize of everlasting life in Heaven,
The just reward of her virtues in this world ;
And as procured for her by the mediation
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Oh World ! thou art indeed a loser,

She the gainer of Immortality.

In NEWHAVEN CHURCHYARD, SUSSEX.

®o % Utemorg of
THOMAS TIPPER, who

departed this life May ye 4th
1785. Aged 54 Years.

READER with kind regard this GRAVE survey
Nor heedless pass where TIPPER’S ashes lay,
Honest he was, ingenuous, blunt, and kind ;

And dared do, what few dare do, speak his mind
PHILOSOPHY and History well he knew,

Was versed in PHYSICIC and in Surgery too ;
The best old STINGO he both brewed and sold,
Nor did one knavish act to get his Gold ;

He played through Life a varied comic part,

And knew immortal HUDIBRAS by heart.
READER, in real truth, such was the Man,

Be better, wiser, laugh more if you can.

- — * — -

Brewer of Tipper Ale, much drank in Brighton thirty years ago.— F.M.

In ST. PHILIP’S CHURCHYARD, BIRMINGHAM.

Sacred

JAMES LAWRANCE

who departed this life Decr 31st 1835,
Aged 68 Years.

ALSO JANE WIFE OF THE ABOVE

who died Jany 2nd 1836,

Aged 74 Years.

In Sunny days, in Stormy weather,

In Youth and Age we clung together;
We liv’d and lov’d and laugh’d and cry’d
Together ; and almost together died.

. o •

In NEWHAVEN CHURCHYARD, SUSSEX.

WILL™ THO? KING,

died 1862, Aged 16 Months.

Not in anger, not in wrath,

The Reaper came that day ;

An Angel visited the earth,

And took our flower away.

LYDIA KATE KING,

died 1865, Aged 5 Years & 4 Months.
Another Lily gathered.

In KENSAL GREEN CEMETERY, LONDON.

THOMAS BAYLIS RUFFLE

Died 22n.d April 1839.
in his 36th Year.

Pain was my portion,

Physic was my food ;

Groans were my devotion,

Drugs did me no good :

Christ was my Physician,

Knew what way was best,

To ease me of my pain,

He took my soul to rest.

ON A CHILD AGED 7 MONTHS.

The cup of life just to his lips he pressed,
Found the taste bitter, and resigned the rest.
Averse then turning, from the face of day,
He softly sighed his little soul away.

- 1 840. -

Lord what was I ? a worm, dust vapour, nothing ;
What «was my life ? a dream, a daily dying :

What was my flesh ? my soul’s uneasy clothing :
What was my time ? a minute ever flying.

My time, my flesh, my life, and I ;

What were we Lord, but vanity.

In KENSAL GREEN CEMETERY, LONDON.

Our Darling Child

RICHARD EDWARD

Left us May 21st 1864, Aged 11 Months.

Little Teddy fare thee well

Safe from earth in heaven to dwell,

Almost Cherub here below,

Altogether Angel now.

In NUNHEAD CEMETERY, LONDON.

«git fMftdhmsiie ^mmhxxxitt of

CAROLINE,

The Beloved Wife of Thomas Janeway,

who was suddenly called to her Heavenly Home

September 29th 1866, Aged 31 Years.

Gone, Gone, Gone, the empty chair I see,

But ah ! no smile as once alights on me,

In what bright region doth thy spirit rest ?
Since all are living thou art surely blest ;

I ask no more the veil will soon remove,

And I shall come to dwell with thee above.

1847.

Dear Mother.

Thou art gone to the land of the nightless day,

To the clime of the winterless year ;

Where the flower never droops on its ever-green spray,
Where the cloud never turns to a tear ;

Where the furrows that suffering had made in thy heart
Shall be sown with the bright seeds of bliss ;

Oh ! the glimpse that I catch of the world where thou art,
Dries my tear for thy absence from this.

In KENSAL GREEN CEMETERY, LONDON.

Co % Utemorj) of
THOMSON WEBB,

who died Novr 14^ 1855.

Aged 54 Years.

Full many a flower that blossom’d in his path
He stooped to gather, and the fruit he pluck’d
That hung from many a tempting bough,- — -All but
The Rose of Sharon, and the Tree of Life :

This, flung its fragrance to the gale, and spread
Its blushing beauties, — that, its healing leaves
Display’d, and fruit immortal, — all in vain !

He neither tasted, nor admired, — and found
All that he chose and trusted, fair but false !

The flowers no sooner gathered than they faded,
The fruits enchanting, dust and bitterness,

And all the world a wilderness of care !

Wearied, disappointed, and near the close
Of this eventful course, he sought the plant
That long his heedless haste o’erlook’d, and proved
Its sovereign virtues,- — underneath its shade
Outstretched, drew from his wounded feet the thorn,
Shed the last tear, breath’d the last sigh, and here
This lov’d one rests, in more than trembling hope.

c/3

C/3

~d P

0)
0)
in

<D *-»

5 1

e c
o o

g ’-d

CX0 *3

d o

«i

g s *2

<0 o ©

2^ c

• ^ <D

CUJ2

X3 C/3

£ C

§s I5'’

«>| g -s

c !r a,

ft3 -S^ 03 "

HS1-^ p2 J=

@ ti x
tO 03 Q

03^ S
ft <D «6

* fa ^ -

^ M a

• ^Z7J5J ^

to
■ c&

rti

§L 43 VI

£s T* 'Z

£: *. s ^3

s *f <s

<r5

-d

Ph*

c/5

’rS

In KENSAL GREEN CEMETERY, LONDON.

Jfn morn of

FRANCIS, INFANT SON OF

JOHN AND EMMA CROPP,
who died July 28th 1840.

- * -

He died before his infant soul

Had ever burnt with wrong desires,

Had ever spurned at Heavens control.

Or ever quenched its sacred fires.

He died to sin — He died to care,

But for a moment felt the rod,

Then springing on the viewless air

Spread his light wings and soared to God.

Also

ALICE HOYLE CROPP,

who died Novr. 18^ 1845.

Aged 2 Years & 4 Months.

Oh ! we liken thee to some clear lamp
Whose brightness with the light within it blended,
And through the cold world’s gath’ring mist and damp
Thy soul was as the flame that upward tended.

The lamp is broken, and the imprisoned fire
Doth to the region of its birth aspire.

In KENSAL GREEN CEMETERY, LONDON.

The Family 6 rave of
THOMAS FREDERICK HARRIS.

i a G f fi d

TO THE MEMORY OF
His Daughter,

SARAH FRANCIS HARRIS,

who died September 6th 1868.

Aged 22.

“ Not lost but gone before.”

Also LOUISA STUART,

Sister of the above
followed her to the Heavenly Home,
Septr 30th 1869. Aged 24.

— As well the Singers as the Players
on Instruments shall be there —

Psalm lxxxvii. 7.

These two Sisters will be remembered as
Teachers in the Offord Road Sunday
School, and as members of the choir that
won the Wreath at the great Musical
Contest, in 1867, at Paris.

In NUNHEAD CEMETERY, LONDON.

Sacred

TO THE MEMORY OF

HENRY ANDREWS TRACY,

who died on the 24^ Jany 1858,
in his 29th Year.

Deeply and sincerely regretted
By his afflicted Family.

TO MY HUSBAND.

A weary weight my bosom bears
Throughout the lonely day,

My heart amidst its household cares,
Still feels thou art away,

Each cheerless meal, each silent walk
Is full of thought of thee,

I seem to hear when others talk,

To see what others see,

While my rapt fancy loves to roam
To thy far distant side ;

And longs to bid thee welcome home
At quiet eventide :

Oh would that thou wert really near,
That those loved lips of thine
Might kiss away this anxious tear,

And blend thy praydr with mine.

In BURY ST. EDMUNDS CEMETERY.

Sacred

The Blemort} of

JOHN Son of

John and Hannah Read
Who died 27 ^ Septr, 1861.

Aged 29 Years.

The Grave doth hide thee from my view,
And I alone my path pursue ;

Thy Father’s numbered with the dead,
And now my Son thou too art fled ;
Thus called with both so soon to part,
That God alone might have my heart.

In the CEMETERY, LEICESTER.

- 18 6 7. -

ON A CHILD AGED 16 MONTHS.

To her was granted that she should
be arrayed in fine linen
clean and white.

Rev. XIX. 8.

- * -

In SEVENOAKS CHURCHYARD, KENT.

SALLY EVEREST LANGRIDGE,
who died Novr. 3rd 1822,

Aged 42 Years.

A tender and a Virtuous Wife,

A pious neighbour in her life,

And when called by the Lord of Heaven,
She died, and left her Children seven,

A tender care for them she had,

They mourn their loss, while she is glad.

- 175 3. -

With Serious Haste
dispatch the Great Affair
’T will be to Late when
thou art Lodged here

In HIGHAM-FERRERS CHURCHYARD, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE.

- 1851. -

With patient mind thy course of duty run,

God nothing does, or suffers to be done,

But thou wouldst do thyself, couldst thou but see
The end of all events, as well as He.

In HIGHGATE CEMETERY, L ONDON.

- 1851. -

- ,We trust

The lingering gleam of his departed life
To oral record ; and the silent heart ;
Depositories faithful, and more kind
Than fondest epitaph : for if these fail,
What boots the sculptured tomb.

In the CHANCEL of the PARISH CHURCH, STRATFORD-ON-AVON.

This is a reduced copy of Rubbing from the Stone that covers the Remains of Shakespeare.

Taken in 1863. — F. M.

* # * “ Body and soul must part :

Fond couple ! link’d more close than wedded pair.

This wings its way to its Almighty source,

The witness of its actions, now its Judge ;

That drops into the dark and noisome grave,

Like a disabled pitcher of no use.”

Robert Blair {died 1746).

“ The sun has sunk behind the hill,

But over earth, and sky, and air,

Eve’s crimson tints are glowing still,

And tidings from the morrow bear.

“ Thus hope, when sinks life’s happiness,

Upon our night of sorrow glows,

Promising brighter, endless bliss,

After our pilgrimage of woes.”

James Ingelgren (a Swedish Poet).

W. H. AND I.. t'OLLINGRIDOE, PRINTERS, LONDON.

Internet Archive Audio

Featured

Top

Images

Featured

Top

Software

Featured

Top

Texts

Featured

Top

Video

Featured

Top

Mobile Apps

Browser Extensions

Archive-It Subscription

Save Page Now

Full text of "An original collection of extant epitaphs"

See other formats